Strategy First Picks Up Urban Empires

Strategy game publisher Strategy First has signed on to publish Revolution Studios' inaugural title, the gang-themed real-time strategy and third-person-shooter Urban Empires, the publisher announced today. Scheduled for retail early in 2008, the game was previously called Gang Wars, and is in development by Revolution Studios' 22-year-old sole employee/founder/president/hair model Danny Green. The online-focused RTS/shooter mashup will support up to 18 players online, and allows gamers to switch between traditional group RTS control and single character action on the fly. Gangs are seemingly segregated based on race, as examples of the "9 different gang types" included Irish, Russian, Japanese, Latino, and Italian. Offline, gameplay is limited to multiplayer matches with bots, as there will be no single player campaign, according to the game's FAQ. Strategy First also included several screenshots to go with the announcement.